Russ Vought, Director of the US Workplace of Administration and Price range (OMB), speaks on the Nationwide Conservative Conference in Washington D.C., Sept. 3, 2025.
Dominic Gwinn | Afp | Getty Pictures
The Trump administration has placed on maintain $2.1 billion in Chicago infrastructure tasks, primarily two efforts to enhance the town’s transit system, Workplace of Administration and Price range Director Russell Vought mentioned Friday.
Vought’s announcement on the third day of the U.S. authorities shutdown comes on the heels of two different strikes by the Trump administration focusing on funding in cities and states led by Democrats.
President Donald Trump and Republican lawmakers have blamed Democrats in Congress for the shutdown, and Trump mentioned Thursday that the shutdown had given him an “unprecedented alternative” to chop what he referred to as “Democrat Companies.”
Vought on Wednesday first revealed that the Division of Transportation was freezing $18 billion in federal funding for 2 main infrastructure tasks in New York Metropolis. Just like the Chicago funding freeze, Vought and the DOT declare that the rationale for the freeze in New York funds is to make sure the the cash isn’t getting used to pay for race-based contracting.
Later that very same day, Vought mentioned that the Division of Vitality had cancelled practically $8 billion in funding for climate-related tasks and different efforts in 16 states, all of which have been gained by Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris within the 2024 election.
On Friday, Vought in a submit on X wrote, “$2.1 billion in Chicago infrastructure projects–specifically the Purple Line Extension and the Purple and Purple Modernization Undertaking–have been placed on maintain to make sure funding isn’t flowing through race-based contracting.”
“Extra information to come back quickly from @USDOT,” Vought added, referring to the Division of Transportation.
A rider heads towards the steps to board a Purple Line practice on the CTA Grand station on Dec. 19, 2023, in Chicago. (Eileen T. Meslar/Chicago Tribune/Tribune Information Service through Getty Pictures)
Eileen T. Meslar | Chicago Tribune | Tribune Information Service | Getty Pictures
Each tasks talked about by Vought are overseen by the Chicago Transit Authority, which operates the town’s practice and bus system.
The U.S. DOT later Friday morning mentioned, “This week, USDOT issued an interim ultimate rule (IFR) barring race- and sex-based contracting necessities from federal grants.”
“To proceed implementation of this rule, USDOT immediately despatched letters to the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) to tell them that two tasks — the CTA Purple Line Extension and the CTA Purple and Purple Modernization Program – are additionally underneath administrative evaluate to find out whether or not any unconstitutional practices are occurring,” the DOT mentioned. “The remaining federal funding for each tasks complete $2.1 billion.”
“That is along with opinions of New York’s Second Avenue Subway and Hudson Tunnel tasks,” the division mentioned. “Illinois, like New York, is well-known to promote race- and sex-based contracting and different racial preferences as a public coverage.”
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